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31 Dead, Over 170 Missing After Ferry Sinks In Philippines

Jacqueline Jackson |
August 17, 2013 | 11:56 a.m. PDT

Executive Producer

Cargo Ship Philippines Crash | HuffingtonPost
Cargo Ship Philippines Crash | HuffingtonPost
Rescue crews are on high alert Saturday afternoon as they continue their search for survivors and bodies from the MV St. Thomas Aquinas ferry crashed on Friday.The crash occurred after a ferry collided with a cargo ship and sank into the waters between southern Philippine islands.

Lt. Elgen Gregorio, from the Philippine Coast Guard, told CNN Saturday that more than 600 people had been rescued but authorities believed over 700 people were aboard the ferry and searchings continued throughout Saturday.  The ship was carrying 715 passengers and 116 crew according to the latest figures.

The crash occurred around 9 p.m. Friday in the Mactan Channel just 2 miles northwest of Cebu City. The passenger ship collided with a cargo ship that was leaving Cebu for the province of Davao. Currently at least 44 people are being treated at one hospital in Cebu, 31 have been found dead and over 100 are still missing.

According to Yahoo due to worsening weather conditions the search for survivors and bodies will stopped but resume early Sunday. Transportation Secretary Joesph Emilio Abaya told a news conference that a typhoon and low pressure had reduced visibility. 

Watch footage of the rescue below:

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Craig Gillespie directed this true story about "the most daring rescue mission in the history of the U.S. Coast Guard.”

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